10.06.2013

Two busy parents of a large family recently discovered the difference
one caring person can make in the life of a child. It’s a simple story,
really, and similar stories take place often and all around us, but the
results are sometimes profound. Their six-year-old son, Micah, was
stubborn about learning to read. Although he was capable of reading, and
his parents worked with him daily, his skills were limited because he
refused to practice and learn.

When Micah’s Sunday School teacher asked him to read something in
class, he told her that he could not read. The teacher mentioned this to
her friend Lynn, a retired schoolteacher. Unable to bear the thought of
a child who can’t read, Lynn called Micah’s mother and respectfully
offered to help. Although the mother was a little embarrassed and unsure
that anyone could succeed with her headstrong son, she graciously
accepted the offer.

Within minutes of arriving at their home for their first lesson, Lynn
won Micah’s affection. She continued to volunteer her time and skills
to helping Micah over the course of several months. Before long, Micah
was happily reading above grade level, and his thankful mother now had
some ideas on how to teach her two younger children to read when they
were ready. Since then Lynn has become a dear friend to the entire
family.

This is a story about a caring and effective teacher, but it’s more
than that. It’s a story about someone who made a difference in the life
of a child. It’s a story about someone who not only could help—but did
help. What we offer doesn’t have to be much; it begins with sensitivity
to a need, a simple desire to lend a hand, and an effort to step up to
the challenge.

Perhaps you’ve heard this saying, written by another person who made a
difference in the lives of young people—a Boy Scout leader of decades
past:

“A hundred years from now it will not matter what my bank account
was, the sort of house I lived in, or the kind of car I drove. But the
world may be different, because I was important in the life of a
[child].”1